I have the honor and pleasure of practicing Craniosacral Therapy at Lavendar Moon Store in Goodyear, AZ. I am very excited about this amazing prospect because the store is owned by my friend Tonya and is a beautiful oasis of all things holistic. Lots of amazing products and services. If you are in Arizona or planning on a visit to Arizona, I highly recommend stopping by. Her website is http://www.lavendarmoonstore.com. All the pertinent contact information is listed there.

Anyway, enough doting on my friend Tonya and her amazing store :)

I am often asked what is Craniosacral Therapy? Elevator speech.... Elevator speech.. . Here is mine:Craniosacral Therapy is based on the foundation where the body knows how to heal itself and encourages the body to self-correct. With a gentle touch (five grams or less) the pracitioner listens to the body to determine where touch is needed to help release tension in the body. Once tension patterns are released in the body, the affected organ system(s) are able to resume it's original functionality.In addition to my elevator speech, my lexicon often involves words such as, movement, flexibility, life, fluidity, nurturing, nourishment, openness, space, breath, flow, release, wellness, balance, energy, dynamic, etc... Just think about the energy of these words. How do these words make you feel right now as you are reading them? Think about them when you have a session with your client or when you are describing Craniosacral Therapy to a client. The difference between Craniosacral Therapy and most manual therapies is the session is client-driven. In other words, the body's innate intelligence (Upledger refers to this as the "Inner Physician") directs the treatment plan. In order to "listen" to the client's body's queues, a therapist must be extremely grounded and present. Because the therapist is also receiving information from the client's energy field. If the therapist is ungrounded while in session, the therapist can not only take on the client's imbalance but can also adversely impact the client's well-being and make matters worse. This is also why it is important for practitioners to regularly receive work and have a regimen of self-care.

So what does Craniosacral Therapy mean to me? My experiences are that Craniosacral sessions as dances. The client leads and I follow. CST is borne from Osteopathy and has a strong scientific foundation, but it is very much an art. The potency of each session is in the unspoken dialog between client and practitioner. This dialog may be open-ended questions that create an opening of possibilities to wellness. There can be stillness and tranquility followed by a crescendo of physical and emotional responses. Whatever the experiences are during a session, it is always a beautiful journey.Thanks so much for stopping by! I look forward to helping you on your wellness journey. In health and love,JoAnn

Author

JoAnn Clinton

JoAnn Clinton has been intrigued with biology ever since she can remember. She's been touching bodies and lives since she became a Reiki Master Teacher in 2004. This desire to help others in a profound way led her to an amazing journey to other countries to learn about other wellness-promoting techniques. It wasn't until 2010 that JoAnn discovered Craniosacral rather, craniosacral discovered her. She completed the Cranial Unwinding program at SWIHA where she received her Certificate of Excellence and underwent extensive training through The Upledger Institute.

JoAnn completed 750 hours of massage therapy training and received her diploma at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts in Tempe, AZ. She continues to continue her bodywork education and considers herself a lifelong learner in the healing arts.